Improvement in brick-machines



3 Sheets-Sheet Z.

E. R. & W. E. GARD.

BRICK-MACHINE.

Patented Jan. V11, 1876.

. INVEJvToRaj #ww/Lf @Attorney WI TJV' ES SE S marina pHoro-L moanaPHER, WASHINGYON D C Smets-sheets. E. R. & W'. E. GARD.

BRICK-MAHNE. 110.172,111. Patented Jan. 11, 1576,

WI TN'ESSES I JV' VEJV TORS;

. /0 l Ww? MII './ittorney UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.,

EMERY R. GARD AND WALTER E. GARD, OFVN'EW YORK, N. Y.; SAID E. R.

GARD ASSIGNOR TO SAID E. GARD. l

IMPROVEMENT IN BRICK-MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 172, lll, dated January11, 18,76; application led october 14, i875.

T o all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that we,'EMERY R. GARD and WALTER E. GARD, of the city,county, and

State of New York, have invented an Im l proved BrickMachne; and we dohereby declare that the following is a full and exact descriptionthereof, reference being hadl to the accompanying drawings making partof this specification- Figure l being a top view of the brick-ma-`chine; Fig. 2, a transverse vertical section of the same in a planeindicated by the line cc cc, Fig. l; Fig. 3, a transverse verticalsection thereof in a plane indicated by the line y y, Fig. l; Fig. 4, apartial longitudinal vertical section of the same in a plane indicatedby the line z z, Figs. l and 3; Figs. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, l0, l1, and 12,sections of parts in detail, as indicated by the letters of referencemarked thereon.

Like letters designate corresponding parts in all of the figures.

In this our improved brick-machine,rthe pug-mill A and pug-mill shaft Bare situated horizontally, and the mold-Wheel C is upon a horizontalshaft, D, situated above the pugmill shaft, so. that the molds a a,arranged in a concentric circle in` the mold-wheel, pass properly acrossthe' bottomor delivery end of the pug-mill in the lower part of theirrevolving circuit, andthe bricks, as fast as they are molded in the saidmolds, are delivered in the upper part of the mold-circuit upon ahorizontally-traveling belt, E, which carries them I from the machinefor hacking. The power is communicated to the machine'by means of ahorizontal shaft, F, 'placed at the side of the pug-mill and parallelwith its sha-ft B, to which it transmits motion through the cog-Wheels band c, respectively, on the two shafts; and a cog-wheel, d, on thedriving-shaft F, gears immediately into cog-gearin g c on the peripheryof the mold-wheel G, so that the pug-mill shaft, workers, and screw turnin the saine direction as the mold-wheel, and the cog-gearing whichtransmits the motions to them is relatively proportioned, so as toimpart the desired velocityto the said parts. rllhe brick-delivering`belt E is driven by means of an internalgear,

f, on an inner periphery of themold-Wheel,

themold-Wheel being formed with a central cavity, as shown in Fig. 4, sothat this movement for driving the belt is rendered practicable. Thesaid interior gear j matches into the ccgs of a pinion, g, on the shafth, of the inner carrying-pulley t' of the delivering-belt. 'lhispulley-shaft is mounted ina bearing,j, attached to or formed with thepug-mill bottom G, and projecting upward into the proper position forthe purpose. The outer carryingpulley k of the delivery-belt is mountedin bearings l l, which have screw-threaded shanks to pass through a postor upright, H, set firmly in the ground at the desired distance from themachine, or attached to an extension of the frame of the machine. Nutson the ends of the screW- Shanks of the bearings serve' to tighten thebelt by drawing the bearings fartherthrough the post.

The whole device is simple, convenient, and

effectual.

Our invention consists in the peculiar features of the generalconstruction of the machine, asabove set forth, and in the specialfeatures which are hereinafter specified. The

clay-forcing screw I, on the pug-mill shaft B, works in immediatevicinity to the inner face 4of the mold-WheelC, Without any interveningplate or partition, as is usual. By this construction, no unnecessaryobstruction to the` movement of the clay 1s interposed, nor useless`friction, and no imperfection nor inconvenience in the working of themachine are incurred.-

To s'ecure the necessary strength of all the parts, with this relativearrangement of the pugmill screw and the mold-wheel, the face of themoldwheel being made annular, with a cen` trai cavity therein, as abovedescribed, this. annular part is made as narrow as practicable, eachside of the outer and inner cor-v ners of the molds a a are set obliqueto the tangents of the mold-wheel, one end of each mold being at rightangles to the radii of the wheel at those respective points, while theother ends of the molds are considerably oblique to the radii of themold-wheel at those points. An annular or arc-shaped opening is formed4in the pug-mill bottom G, to receive the annular part of the mold-wheel,allowing, thereby, the inner surfaces of the mold-wheel and ofthepng-mill bottom to be iiush with each other. The pug-mill screw lsweeps. across this annular part of the mold-wheel, and ills the moldsin the most eflicient manner.

In order to hold the pug-mill screw I close and iirm to the pug-millbottom, and to the face of the mold-wheel, and to adjust it, ifnecessary, there is located in the outer bearing m of the pug-mill shaftB, a block, n, (Fig. 10, which is a section taken at the line 1, Fig.1,) of chilled iron or othervery hard material, to bearagainst the endof the shaft; and outside of this block is located a nut, in which anadjusting-screw, o, turns and bears against the block, for adjusting itsposition .and that of the pug-mill shaft and screw. The block n has anoilcavity,.as shown, to be provided with a small outlet-opening leadingto the center of the end of the pug-mill shaft. The oil-cavity is to bekept supplied with oil and cotton-waste, or its equivalent, to preventthe too rapid escape of the oil. The' block a and screw o, and its nut,are embedded in cavities in the bearing m, and they can be removed atwill on taking off the cap of the bearing.

A precisely similar device for holding, adjusting', and oiling themold-wheel shaft D in the fra-me, is employed.

The inner end of the mold-wheel shaft has its bearing in an extension ofthe pug-mill bottom; and the inner bearing ofthe pugmill shaft is in theouter end of the pug-mill. There is, or may be, also, a bearing-support4forthe pug-mill shaft just outside or back of the forcing-screwl,supported by the sides of the pug-mill or tub. The lower half of thepugmill is suitably supported by, or forms part of, the frame of themachine, and its upper half is hinged to the lower half or maderemovable therefrom.

The pug-mill bottom G, as far as it extends aroundthe periphery of themold-wheel, including an extension, pf, which contains thepressure-plates or stone blocks, is made to closely embrace or inclose aportion of the outer periphery of the mold-wheel, and, to prevent theleakage of clay between the two, we form one or more angularprojections, q, shown most clearly in Fig. 8, which represents a partialsection of the mold-wheel, and pugmill bottom at the line 2, Fig. 2, onthe periphery of the mold-wheel and corresponding angular shoulders orrecesses'on or in the inclosing-surface of the pug-mill bottom. Asimilar construction is applied between the inner periphery of the mold-wheel and the part of the pug-mill bottom which fits therein. Thefollowers J J in the molds are forced backward therein by the pressureof the clay itself, driven inward by the screw I ou the pug-mill shaft.The followersare driven forward to produce the compression ofthe bricksin the molds by means of a track or cam, K,

secured in the frame of the machine, concentric with, and opposite to,the pathway ofthe followers, and extending through so'much of thecircuit of the followers in the revolution of the mold-wheel as isnecessary to fulfill its functions, which include also the regulation ofthe backward movement of the followers from the pressure of the clay aswell as the active function of forcing the followers inward to compressthe brick, or hold them under pressure while they are carried along incontact with the pressure plates or blocks. A This regulation of' themovement of the followers while filling the molds, and the shape of thecam-track K, to effect it are important and peculiar. When,successively, each follower in its circuit with the mold-wheel, rstcomes opposite to the interior of the pug-mill its inner surface isiiush, or nearly so, with the inner surfaces of the mold-wheel andpugmill bottom. across the inner space ofthe pug-mill, and the screwI'is acting to press the clay into't-hel mold, the follower is allowed,by the gradual retreat, or backward inclination of the camtrack, asshownat r, Fig. l, to move backward only gradually, so as to cause themold to be continually filling during the whole, or nearly the whole,traverse across the pugmill. Therefore, no air enters the mold, but theclay enters and fills it as fast as the follower retreats. Hence, no airever interferes to spoil the bricks, and the clay is always thoroughlycompacted in the molds, and without any sudden exertion of power orstrain on the machine.

The horizontal position of the pug-mill and of the moldwheel shaftenables us to get ready access to the cam-track and all the operativeparts connected with the mold-wheel and followers, and to adjust anypart necessary with convenience.

The upper part or continuation M of the cam-track, which is situatedopposite to the pressure plates orblocks, is made separate from the maintrack K below; and this part is made adjustable toward and from the fol-`lowers, to determine the amount of pressure to be given to the bricks.We effect this adjustment by casting screws s s in the same, to reachbackward through the sustaining parts ofthe frame, and two nuts, t t,are elnployed for each screw, as shown in Fig. l, one for adjusting thetrack-piece, and the other for tightening and retaining it in position.

At the upper end of the adjustable part M ofthe cam-track is amovablepiece, N, adjustable out or in, toward or from the-said part, togive the final pressure to the greater or less, as desired.

The mold-wheel is sustained against the pressure of the clay in thepug-mill, and under the pressure plates or blocks, in additior to thehardened block at the outer end of its shaft, by means offriction-rollers 0 P, one opposite to the pressure-plates, and the otherThen, while it is traversing` bricks,

opposite t lthe ipug-'millg "the `foru1er1 1 being shown in Figs. landu, and the latter, inY its detail"` arrangementinfFig; lZQLt-hesection, Fig:ftakenatla horizontal lineeven with the* center of the'roller. f Each of these fric.`

tionrollers hasa somewhat-beveled or conical periphery, tota-'gainst acorrespondingform` of thefback `surface of Ethe mold-wheel, nearits'iperiphery;agaist'whichk surface the frictidnl'rollers: "bear,` EachV `:t'rictiouroller turns ul'ion` aiixed aXfle or pivot, lufwh ich hassquare or'atlsided'ends that "slide in 4slots lorways of`=it`s bearings,andagainst-these Veuds,llater ally,arepressedfblocks o 21,(or` nuts,when screws pivotedlstationary 1in Vthe frame are -ernployed,)'byadjustihgscrews, toadjust `the rollers to proper` angles forfittingthebeveled surface of^theinold-wheel5 also, a block or nut,w`b,bearsagainstthe outerendof the pivot of thef roller '0, and against lthelower endwof? the roller P, "and-y eachisedjusted by a setrscrew," al,as shown, to adjust the roller toward orfrom the* shaft of themold-Wheel,`

and bring its` periphery `in contact with the beveled surface ofthemold-wheel. The pivot has ashoulderfoutsideof the roller, to causeinalradjustinent ofithe pivot. f 1

i "Each pivotA u fhasan oil-cavity,-b, in its eeuteuiobe suppliedthrough a hole, c', vin the 'upper side thereof, for `the roller 0, and

the roller to niove laterally with thelongitud having'anotherholefd,(shownfinFig. 1I,- i

which "is a section through the center "of `the pivbt and roller 0,) tofurnish oil to theeye of the roller, to Which'it leads, for lubricatingthe saine. Forthe verticalpivot of the roller upper endorjouriial, and`be supplied through the upper bearing of-the'pivot; Each cavity istocontain cotton-,Waste and oil.

"As soon as'the 'nioldsare filled With clay they pass from thepug-inillat once behinda plate or stone block,Q,"Fig.` 5, whichreprescnts asection taken in the concentric curved liiief4 4,;Fig. 2,1which servestol cut oi' the clay inthe pug-mill from that in the inolds,

and-to' n oduce acounter-pressure against thefollo\\ieI-s,"actingagainst the `bricks by the forceflof" the `cani-M'.`".^This plate or=-bl`ock`is adjusted to thepface oftheinold-Wheelby set? screws in .theextension p' of the puginill bottom,simply 'bearingiagaiust thc back surface offthe-ffplate" orblock;` Itissustained in po sition'byfawooden Ior-iron pin', e', passed l"cufs'foi'all* surplus `clayffroni the bricks inthe moldsjand gives a filialcounter-pressureito the' ibricksyfsmdothiu'g also Ethei'r outensurtace.

`It fis adjustedto 'the inold-ifwheel :byV screws gg' in i `theextension 9,? bearing lagaiiistf fthe back surface of the plate orblock, whichvalso `is sustained in positionbya Wooden or `metallic pin,h', inserted, through the extension, into theplate or block,.asrepresenteda i After the bricks have been subinittedftothe ynal pressureand brought upinto the proper position, they are gradually pushed Voutofthe therefrom, by means of a stationary/cam, S,`

Fig.1 1.` This cam,\for convenience andeconf oinyj of construction,`isvformed asa parte of the bearing; cap Tof `the mold-wheef shaft.

`The arrangement` ofthe 'molds a a, asbefore speciiied, so that thelrear ends ithereof, as

the mold-wheel revolves, arein line with radii of the" mold-wheel, thuscausingthe front iends of the molds" to `extend neareryto `the outerperiphery of :the said mold-wheel, enables the bricks to be depositedupon the horizontal carrying-offbeltE just when the molds fare in ahorizontalposition, so that bothends` .of lthe bricks descend alike uponthe belt and ,throughl the smallest possible distanceafter they dropfrom the molds. Thus they come upon the belt perfect in form and 1unmarred in surface., i i n For oiling the i faces of the followerswithl out oiling the face ofthe mold-Wheel the 4fol- Ilowers are caused,at proper` times,`1toibe pushed out vsomewhat beyond the inlierlsurfaceof theinold-Wheel when or immediately after they deliver the bricks uponthe carryingoffbelt To accomplish this there isa movable piece, U, intheface of theoam S, adj ust-ableltowardand from-the mold-Wheelbyaset-screw, i', in the canniso that' thispiece can at any time beadjusted forward tothrow .the followersrbe-- yond the faceiof themold-Wheel .When'ithe oil-i` ing is required, and afterward be adjustedback flush with the face ofthe cam fwhenthe followers are desired onlyto be pushed-"out even with lthefface'of` the mold-wheel, The pieceUshou'ld be adjusted forward only when the machine is in operation,making full bricks 5, otherwise, since the pressure ofthe? clayfisre'lied on to push the followers back into. the molds, the tollowerswouldstrike the-edge of the pressureplate or block Q, and produce damage.'lherefo're,` theV nlachineis `always first'started andgottoinakingtfull bricksibef fore theffollowers are thrown out for oiling,`and thevpiece U is always `set back before stopping the machine, `andthe claygets lowin the-pugnxill, and finally does not till the moldsm`The `follower oilingv device con'sistsof'` an oil.- box, V,2secured tothe pulley-bearing jij-or to an extension of the `png-mill bottom`(,ialit= tle distance from the face of the mold-Wheel,

and providedwithl an piling-brush, 1W,\o'r.i.its equivalentglat thebottomfto apply` the oil i to the followe'rs'fasE they pass by it; `1The oil-:box is fllled with oil, and has a peculiar' device forgradually supplyingA the oil to the brush without waste, as shown inFig.9, which represents a cross-section of the oil-box at the line 5 5,Fig. There are three, more or fewer, screws k k k inserted through theoil-boX,their lower end s reaching down near to the brush.

Each screw has a small hole through its center up from its lower end, toa position near the bottom of the oil-cavity, and from the upper end ofthe said hole a side passage communicates with the oilcavity, as shown.

The screws canl be screwed upward to open the whole side aperture to theoil, and allow a full ow of oil to descend to the brush; or they can bescrewed down till the side apertures are entirely closed in the bottomof the oil-box, thus entirely stopping-the ow of oil or the said sideapertures can be partially closed, more or less, to any degree, to allowa greater or less flow of oil. Thus the exact quantity of oil necessaryfor the purpose can be regulated to a nicety, and no waste of oil bepermitted.

The top of the oil-box serves as a support to the carrying-off belt E,which passes along immediately over it, where the bricks are conveyed,so that the belt is. thereby relieved of much strain, and no saggingthereof takes place from the weight of the bricks. The bricks are placedupon the belt edge down, so that they are delivered by the belt in themost convenient position to take hold of by the attendants for hacking.

The followers J J are of improved construction in several particulars.Each follower has its friction-roller X set oblique to the followersufficiently to compensate for the oblique position of the mold, so thatits faces shall be properly tangent to the circles in which the followermoves by the revolution of the moldwheel, and the bearings Y Y of vitsjournals are set in correspondingly-oblique positions in the follower,as shown in Fig. 3, to bring the roller to the position required. Thesebearings slide in ways in the sides of the follower,

toward and from the face thereof', and their distance from the face ofthe follower is adjusted to vary the thickness of the bricks, and tocause the bricks made in all the molds in the mold-wheel to be uniformin thickness, by means of adjusting-screws ll l screwed into thefollower opposite tothe inner ends of the bearings for the said bearingsto abut against, so that by setting the said screws farther out or in,the position of the faceof the follower, in relation to the bearings andtheir frictionroller, is determined, and since this roller moves incontact with the cam-track, which has a iixed relation to themold-wheel, thereby the-depth to which the follower sinks in the Inold,to limit. the thickness of the bricks molded therein, is determined.

These set-screws might be screwed into the inner ends of the bearings,the heads thereof projecting toward and bearing against the follower,with the' same result asabove specified.

The journals of the friction-roller X are lubricated by means ofoil-cavities m m Fig. 12, which represents a central section through thefriction-roller and its journals and bearings, in the bearings Y Y, tohold cotton-waste and oil. A small orifice opens from eachl oilcavitytothe roller-journal within. The oilcavities are closed by corks orstoppers fn a', so that no escape of oil takes place except tothejournals, and there only as fast as needed.

Each of these oil-cavities may contain oil enough to last a month, andno waste of o il result from the large supply. Thus great convenienceand economy are effected from this construction. i

Theprineiples and construction of this machine, besides the purpose ofmaking bricks,

are-also equally applicable to molding peat and coal-dust for fuel, andlikewise in proper size and form of molds, to molding linseedcakes,soap, sugar, and other substances of plastic consistency requiring to bemolded into forms for use.

What we claim as our invention, and dcsire to secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. The combination of the horizontal pngmillA and pug-mill shaft B, themold-wheel (l, on a horizontal shaft, andthe delivery-belt E, allarranged substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

2. The combination of the drivingshaft F, with the pug-mill shaft B andmold-wheel C, substantially as herein specified.

3. The interior gearf on the mold-wheel C, in combination with thepinion'g, shaft h, and driving-pulley i of the delivering belt,substantially as herein specified.

4. The outer carrying-pulley k of the delivering-belt, providedwithscrew-shank bearings l l, tightened by adjusting-nuts, in combinationwith the sustaining-post H, substantially as herein specified.

5. The combination of the clay-forcing screw I, on the pug-mill shaft B,with the moldwheel C, when the said screw is arranged to turn inimmediate vicinity to the face of the mold-wheel, substantially as andfor the purpose herein specified.

6. The combination of a block, n, provided with an oil-cavity andadjusting-screw, 0, with the shafts B and I) of the png-mill andmoldwheel. arranged in the bearing, substantially as and for the purposeherein specified.

7. The cam -track K, constructed with a gradually-retreating-surface, r,incombination with the followers J J, pug-mill A, and screw I, arrangedso as to cause the followers to come iiush or nearly so with the surfaceof the mold-wheel when they are first brought oppo site to the pug-mill,and then to gradually recede into the molds ,only as fast as the clayfills the molds, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

8. The movable brick-pressing cam M, having adjusting-screws ss casttherewith, and provided with double nuts t t,supporting and adjustingthe cam, Asubstantiallyr as herein specified.

9. The adjustable pressure-piece N, attached to the upper end of the camM, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

10. The friction-rollers P, provided with non-revolving pivots u u,adjustable laterally and endwise, substantially as and for the purposeherein specified.

11. The combination ofthe pressure-block Q and surplusclay cut-ott andfinal pressureblock R, arranged with an intermediate surplus-clayoutlet,f, substantially as and for the purpose herein specified.

12. The cam S, for expelling'the bricks from the molds, constructed toform a part or projection of the bearing-cap T of the mold-wheel shaft,substantially as herein specified.

13. The molds a u, arranged obliquel-y to the radii of the vertical moldwheel G, substantially as described, iu combination with the horizontaldelivering-belt E, for the purpose herein specied.-

14. The movable piece U, on the cam S, forl throwing out the followers JJ to be oiled, sub'- p stantially as herein specified.

15. The oil-box V and oilng-brush W, at the bottom thereof, incombination with the followers J J, forthe purpose herein specified.

16. The series of perforated oil-delivering screws `la k k in theoil-box V, constructed and operating substantiallyas herein specified.

17. The belt-support V, either acting` also as an oil-box or not, incombination with the delivering-belt E, substantially as and for thepurpose herein specified.

- 18. The sliding` roller-bearings Y Y, and adjusting-screws Z l',arranged as described, in` combination with the follower J,substantially as herein specified.

EMERY R. GARD. WALTER E. GARD.

Witnesses: ,v p ORLANDO P. SMITH, j JOHN B. LEWIS.

